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“We can’t ever truly know anyone,” I said, watching Vincent’s reaction. There was a slight flinch. A flicker of guilt. “Not until we’ve lived with them, seen what they’re like when the masks fall away.” I took a deep breath, pushing away the images in my head. Vile, disgusting images that were like a brand of hot iron on my skin. “Even then…” I shrugged. “We only see what they let us see.”

Vincent’s closed his eyes with a sigh, and I wondered just how much of himself he hid too.

The man who made me who I was now… Max Stills was very good at hiding his true self.

No one would have believed us if we had told our truths. Max and Martha were pillars of the fucking community. Max was a member of the church and the pastor’s closest friend. He volunteered at the community kitchen and homeless shelters. Martha went to Sunday mass with home-baked cookies.

To the outside world, he was everything a real man should be, and she was the perfect wife. And what better way to show off their kindness than to foster three orphans?

But behind the walls of the hellhole they made for us, they were monsters, stripped of the masks they had worn for the public.

Martha blamed us for her husband’s actions. She’d often lock us in a room with no food and water until she was convinced our sins had been absolved; until she was certain that the demons within us had been exorcised.

She starved us to silence us.

“You’re evil. The devil’s in your head. I shouldn’t have taken you in.”

But we all knew that she wasn’t the one who took us in. It was her husband, and he didn’t take us out of the goodness of his fucking heart.

“Keep an eye on Asher, please. He’s dangerous,” Vincent said, a look of resignation in his eyes.

“I will, Sheriff Bricks. If I find anything suspicious, I’ll call you.”

“I told you. It’s Vincent for you.” Smiling, he stood up and gave me his hand.

“Of course. See you around, Vincent.”

He turned around, walked toward the door and stopped. “I’m… not asking this as a cop,” he said, blue eyes shining. “Are you single, Doctor Sharma?”

Mouth open, I stared at the man with confusion. Was he asking me out? In the middle of a murder investigation?

I nodded.

“Do you want to have dinner with me?”

“Today?”

He was handsome, and finding a decent man in this part of nowhere was hard, especially when I was stuck in Hollowhaven. But was I ready to date a cop? Cops had a built-in sensor to detect bullshit, and I bullshitted often.

“Whenever you want,” he said, a small smile on his lips. “Or if you want to say no, that’s okay too. I… shit, it’s been a while since I tried to flirt with a woman, and now I realize this isn’t the best time to start it.”

“How about Saturday night? I’ll meet you in town?” I said, hoping this wouldn’t become one of my many mistakes.

I had quite a long list of things I shouldn’t have done. I was trying to become better, more sensible. Maybe dating a good man who wasn’t a murderous asshole would be good for my derailing sanity.

The last man I dated—fucked?—tried to eviscerate me. Of course, he was trying to kill me only because I killed his best friend first, but yeah. My relationships were never sunshine and rainbows. Perhaps it was time to break the pattern.

“Saturday. Yes. Of course. I’ll be waiting,” he said, giving me a bright smile before he walked away.

These were the moments when I truly missed Layne and Trina. When I couldn’t just spin around and ask them for advice.

Not that they were particularly good at it. Most of the time, their words of wisdom were less sound and more unadulterated madness.

Sighing, I leaned against the chair when Jimmy walked in with Nurse Dona for his session.

“Hello, Jimmy. How are you feeling today?” Jimmy sat down opposite to me, and for another hour, we talked about Millie and Sarah, Michael and Asher, songs and nightmares, while I successfully put my mind to rest.

When he left, I stared at the clock, tapping my fingers against the table. Another fifteen minutes, and then I had a session with Asher.